With the ugly truth behind Frankie's assassination revealed, a torn Olivia wonders how different her life â¤” and the country â¤” would be if she, Mellie and Cyrus had never rigged Fitz's election.

Everyone has a secret... and Olivia Pope has dedicated her life to protecting and defending the public images of the nation's elite and keeping those secrets under wraps. Revered and feared at the same time, Olivia, a former communications director to the President of the United States, left the White House to open her own prominent crisis management firm. She is hoping to start a new chapter in her life — both professionally and personally — but she can't seem to completely cut ties with her past. Slowly it becomes apparent that her dysfunctional staff, who specialize in fixing other people's lives, can't quite fix the ones closest at hand-their own. The creator and executive producers of Grey's Anatomy and Private Practice delve into the behind-the-scenes machinations of a mesmerizing top crisis manager in ABC's highly anticipated new drama, “Scandal”. Olivia's accomplished staff, who would follow her anywhere and do whatever it takes to save someone's reputation, include Stephen Finch, who has dated his share of women but is trying to settle down and have a family; Harrison Wright, a slick litigator; Huck, hacker extraordinaire; investigator Abby Whelan, who has an enduring crush on Stephen; and Quinn Perkins, the new young woman in the office who is in awe of Olivia, but is initiated in a trial by fire on her very first day on the job. Olivia's former boss, President Fitzgerald Grant and his chief of staff, Cyrus Beene, are never far from her beat. Her clients aren't the only ones with secrets, though; surprisingly, she may need to exercise all her damage control skills on her own behalf.